John couldn’t wait to kill those bastards with his bare hands. He would raise them as his soldiers and force them to butcher each other in cold blood. Just imagining the thought made a cold smile appear on his lips.
Lyra stood some feet behind John, arms crossed, unimpressed. Her voice was insolent when she finally addressed him.
"My liege, no offense, but you are weak compared to those monsters on top of the food chain."
John glanced at her over his shoulder. "Well, I have you, right? You should be enough. You’re one of the strongest with those skills of yours. Killing them will be a piece of cake."
Lyra regarded him for a long moment. Then shook her head.
"Snap out of it, Master. I am not even worth mentioning in the same league as those people. You have to get stronger yourself. I doubt even an S-rank skill will save you against them. They are that strong."
She continued, voice steady.
"Then there are the dragons and other mythical beings that are leagues above our kind. We are mere food to them." A pause. "Oh, wait... am I still considered human right now?"
John’s eyes widened. He never expected her to retain so much of her original personality after being resurrected as his undead. Her sharp tongue and dry wit were all present and accounted for.
He decided to ignore the last thing she said.
"We have to clear this dungeon, my dear Lyra," he said, already walking. "Then we will keep going. Keep clearing more dungeons and rifts. Gather a lot of comrades who can actually take those scum down."
Lyra followed silently for a few seconds before responding.
"Why not use Awaken on your fallen comrades as well?"
He stopped dead in his tracks. He turned slowly, anger flashing across his face. Lyra tightened her mouth immediately. He had not forgotten, and had not forgiven her for killing them. It did not matter that she was his dedicated undead now. Some things should not be said.
She kept her mouth shut the rest of the walk. Her Master’s anger was not something she wished to test twice.
They walked deeper into Glenwood Cavern, heading towards the second floor. It was the first time John had ever gone that far into any dungeon. Every time the higher-ups had ordered him to stay on the first floor and assist the real fighters. Now he was stronger. Any dungeon Rank C or below was fair game.
As soon as they stepped on the second floor, three figures burst from the shadows and cornered them.
Barkhide Wolves.
Lean wolf-like creatures with patches of rough bark growing across their bodies in place of fur. They were infamous for hunting in small packs and using the cavern’s natural cover to their advantage.
Their yellow eyes were fixed greedily on John and Lyra.
Lyra spun her new twin daggers. The weapons were long and slender, forged from blackened metal that seemed to drink in the light. A thin, dark aura clung to the edges like living smoke.
"Master, just give the order and I will tear these mongrels to pieces."
"No need for that, Lyra," John said calmly. "Just watch out for the cowardly ones that try to sneak up on us."
She obeyed instantly. Her Master’s words were law. If he ordered her to kill herself, she would do it without hesitation.
John dashed forward, right hand clenched into a fist. He wanted to test his new power without using his scythe. He poured all of his energy into a single strike aimed at the nearest wolf’s head.
The impact was sickening. The wolf’s skull caved in with a wet crack and its head spun through the air before the lifeless body crumbled to the stone.
Lyra watched from the side, cheering inwardly like a fangirl who had just seen her favorite celebrity in person for the first time.
Out of nowhere, three smaller forms erupted from the ground, crystalline claws glinting as they lunged for John’s back.
Crystal Moles.
Burrowing creatures the size of large dogs, their bodies were covered in tough, dirt-colored hide and tipped with razor-sharp crystal claws that could tear through stone. They preferred to ambush from below.
Lyra saw them first. Her gray eyes flashed crimson. She vanished and reappeared in a blur of motion, twin daggers already mid-swing.
Mirror Step
An illusion of herself remained behind while her real body had closed the distance.
The first two moles were sliced cleanly in half before they could react. The third one tried to scramble back into its tunnel, but Lyra was already there, waiting.
If the creature had a mouth capable of speech, it would have asked why she was suddenly in front of it. The answer was simple: Mirror Step.
Meanwhile the remaining two Barkhide Wolves saw their packmate fall and lunged together.
John raised his right hand. The Soulreaper Scythe materialized in a swirl of cold air. He swung it in a wide, vicious arc. Both the wolves were cleaved apart mid-leap, their bodies hitting the ground in pieces.
The corpses dissolved into motes of light a few seconds later. A soft chime rang in John’s mind.
He had gained three stat points. Without hesitation he poured all of them into Agility.
Lyra, on the other hand, had gained something new from killing the three Crystal Moles. When she reported it, John opened her status and smiled.
New Skill Unlocked for Lyra Vane
Shadow Shard (B) - Her blades leaves behind lingering shadows that slow and disorient target/s.
This was exactly why John liked dungeons. Monsters gave skill points, stat points, and sometimes useful gear. The system rewarded blood.
They began speedrunning the rest of the floors.
On the next stretch they ran into five more Barkhide Wolves. John killed three of them with nothing but his bare fists, earning another three stat points that he immediately invested into Strength.
Lyra finished the remaining two and received a single stat point along with a dark green cloak that shimmered faintly when she put it on. The cloak increased the wearer’s Agility by a noticeable margin.
By the time they reached the fourth floor-the mid-level of Glenwood Cavern where every type of monster started appearing together- John’s expression had hardened.
A rough humanoid form of packed earth and stone blocked the path ahead.
A Dirt Elemental.
Slow. Extra durable. Capable of reforming after being broken apart unless it was completely destroyed. These things were the most dangerous monsters in the entire dungeon for anyone who lacked overwhelming force.
John’s jaw tightened. One of these things had killed a comrade in this very dungeon a few hours ago, without even needing Lyra’s involvement.
Even if she had helped kill his comrades, that man would have still died. His comrade had wasted all his strength trying to shatter the elemental, only for it to keep reforming. Exhausted and bleeding, he had been finished off by a swarm of Glenwood Bats-oversized bats with leathery wings edged in sharp bone that targeted eyes and soft tissue.
John had only snapped out of his fear in time to awaken a few Crystal Moles he had killed earlier and use them as a last-second shield.
Looking back now only made the rage burn hotter.
He would never let anyone precious to him die so easily again.
"What’s up, my dude, you fucking scum," John muttered, staring at the Dirt Elemental. "You thought, huh?"
He dismissed the scythe, letting it vanish into thin air. Then he stepped forward and slammed his bare fist into the creature’s chest.
The elemental cracked and partially collapsed. It began to reform.
John hit it again.
And again.
Every time the body tried to pull itself together, he destroyed it further, fists and boots raining down with pure, boiling fury. Finally he drove his right foot through what remained of its core. The Dirt Elemental crumbled into loose dust and scattered across the stone floor.
A new panel flared to life in front of him.
New Skill Unlocked
Death’s Grip (A)
Bare-handed strikes drain a portion of the target’s life force and transfer it to the user. Especially effective against regenerating enemies.
’Great,’ he muttered under his breath.
He gestured for Lyra to follow. She obediently did so. They left the fourth floor behind and headed toward the fifth.
The real farming had only just begun.
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A/N: So if you all like my novel just add to your library an vote with your powerstones please.